A gift just too big to wrap

Winding Brook ready to unveil holiday lights.

Winding Brook ready to unveil holiday lights.

December 08, 2006|KIM KILBRIDE Tribune Staff Writer

Reindeers jutting toward the sky, 6-foot-tall gingerbread people and a life-size Santa kicking back under a palm tree are just a few of the highlights of this year's holiday display extraordinaire in Winding Brook Park. The official, mega-size neighborhood exhibit, "Gift to the Community," begins tonight, but residents of the subdivision off Day Road east of Main Street in Mishawaka have been in the decorating spirit for weeks. "We start early," said homeowner Paul Ott. "We try to put the icicle lights out in mid-November. Then, we keep at it until we turn on the switch," he said by phone earlier this week. Ott lives in a cul-de-sac off Old Bedford Trail. He and his neighbors often try to coordinate their decorations. Their theme this year? "White lights," he said. "Sometimes the simple displays are really the outstanding ones." While the neighborhood tour, which has been going on for decades, is free, donations are accepted for nine different charities, said Brad Meier, the coordinator of the program and a Winding Brook resident. Last year, more than $20,000 was collected for organizations such as Hannah's House, Tri Kappa and the Montessori Classroom at the Center for the Homeless, he said. The homeowner's association also oversees the judging of the displays, Meier said. There's no monetary award or gift, but rather a ribbon for first- through third-places. With the abundance of handmade, supercreative displays in the neighborhood each year, one might think that residents would be on a mission to outdo one another. But, for the most part, neighbors say, a gracious holiday spirit prevails. Sue Reber, a seven-year resident of Winding Brook, said competition is strictly friendly with neighbors often complimenting each other's efforts. "We just have fun doing it," she said by phone. She and her family enjoy taking in others' displays as much as folks who come from out of town. In fact, they have a special tradition each Christmas Eve. They attend church services and then take their first, official tour of their neighbors' gift to the community.Staff writer Kim Kilbride: kkilbride@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6554